


100 Dates

by hyde1403



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Clueless Boys, M/M, Some OOC, Tags May Change, first time m/m sex, just over all cutsiness, major fluff, mostly canon except epilogue, send me date ideas
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-30
Updated: 2016-03-30
Packaged: 2018-05-30 02:46:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6405661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hyde1403/pseuds/hyde1403
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry was getting pretty lonely after his amicable divorce with Ginny, and he made up for it by living for his kids. That was until Ginny decided it was time he start dating again and sets Harry up on a blind date. This story goes through Harry's newly found love life in a series of dates that he goes on. Through all of the awkward first time clichés, raising children, and nosey family, what possibly could go wrong as Harry Potter is determined to date one Draco Malfoy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	100 Dates

**Author's Note:**

> As much as I live for the clichéd stories of my favorite pairing falling in love forever at Hogwarts, or being joined as soul mates, or their relationship happening to ridiculously fast; I wanted something a little different. Why not just a simple story of a lovely couple going on dates and seeing where the time spent takes them?
> 
> For this story, I'm splitting each chapter into multiple parts (dates), to be able to reach at least one-hundred dates. Therefore, because I plan do so much, if you would like to send me ideas for any future dates, please do so!! I have no doubt I will get stumped and run out of date ideas, especially since I'm in the middle of writing so many other stories.
> 
> For any ideas, you can send me a message on here, or find me on twitter! You can follow me as I post updates, or assist in giving ideas. My handle is the same username I have on here, @hyde1403. Also, if you haven't done so already check out my other stories!
> 
> I've also been nominated for awards involving many of my stories in 9 different categories on awards . fanaticfanfics . com, voting begin April 11- May 2. Plese go check out the site and when the time comes, please vote for me. Winning just one award would me so much to me and would love it if my loyal readers helped me out!
> 
> Thank you for your support, even if it's a silent kudo,  
> Echo Harmony

Date 1

    “Daddy loves you too. Yes Jamie, I will see you and Teddy tomorrow. Uh huh, that’s amazing. Can you put Mommy back on?” Harry waited with the phone pulled away from his ear as his child screamed for his mother. He had to smile though, no matter how often he told his son to put the phone down first, Jamie never did in case he missed something that he said. The separation had been a little hard on Jamie, but thankfully him and Ginny were still close friends which made everything much easier by splitting their days evenly for their shared custody. Ginny was even willing to watch Teddy for him when he needed a babysitter, like tonight. But tonight was going to be difficult, because of his ex-wife, for the woman decided it was time for him to start dating and wanted to ‘help’ him.

“He there yet Harry?” Ginny’s voice came on the phone. Harry looked around where he was standing in a small deserted lot. He had chosen this place because it was empty and so he wouldn’t be confused as to who he was meeting, but it was well lit and close enough to the main street that if he needed to yell for help, someone would hear. He still had no idea why he was doing this, or why he even agreed to Ginny’s request to going on a blind date.

“No, not yet,” Harry replied, running a hand through his hair nervously as he looked around the lot again. “I still can’t believe I let you talk me into this. I was doing just fine on my own.”

“Of course you were Harry,” she said sarcastically, while laughing at him. He wanted to be angry, but he couldn’t be with Ginny. No matter how annoying she was. “If doing fine meant being miserable as everyone else has been getting together and having to go to weddings by yourself.”

“Gin,” Harry sighed heavily. Yes he was pathetic, but that didn’t mean she had to keep bringing it up to him.

“I know Harry, I get it, but you needed help. I know you want to be a great father for Jamie and Teddy, but putting everything you are into them will only make you more miserable.” It already was actually, Harry thought. His children meant everything to him, but seeing his friends and family live happy lives with their significant others made him feel like half of a man. That was how Ginny managed to get him to agree to setting him up for a blind date. He could trust her to not get someone that was just looking for a power trip from being seen with _The_ Harry Potter.

“Can you please tell me who I’m meeting?” Harry asked, though it was pointless. She never told him who he was meeting or what he even looked like. She claimed that it would cloud his judgement on what was a good looking man. How that could happen he would never know. Most men were attractive to him, as long as it was obvious they took care of themselves he didn’t have a problem. But Ginny had said she knew what his ‘type’ was and what to look for.

“Nope! Just trust me Harry, you won’t be bored,” she said gleefully.

“Fine.” It was just better to give up. “Thanks again for watching Teddy for me. I know you don’t have a problem with it, but thank you.”

“Harry, I love Teddy just as much, you know that. This is something you really need, and by the sound of it, you’re finally realizing it too,” she replied, her voice getting low and sentimental. This is what he loved most about Ginny, she understood what he felt with just a single word spoken. Even when he realized he was gay, she was the most understanding from their whole family.

“Yeah, I am. Look, I’m going to let you go now. I’ll let you know how it went when I get the kids-”

“Hello, Potter.” Harry froze. He hadn’t heard that voice in a very long time and it was not one he had expected tonight. Oh he was going to kill Ginny for this. He hoped that for some reason the person behind him was just going to keep walking by and not be who he was supposed to meet. He turned around to face his unexpected visitor as he listened to Ginny cackle in his ear.

“Sounds like he’s there. Just keep an open mind on this Harry. See you in the morning!” She said before ending the call.

Harry just stood there frozen, with his phone still up to his ear. He couldn’t believe what was happening to him. First Ginny sets him up on a blind date and then said date turns out to be one Draco Malfoy. Draco Malfoy. The Draco Malfoy, his schoolyard nemesis that made his life just a bit more difficult than it needed to be. Sure after the war, he had spoken on Draco’s behalf about his involvement in the war and helped keep him out of prison. And after that, the only time they saw each other was at ministry functions and sometimes on the consultation boards for work. However, those times they did see each other was very formal and hardly any words were spoken between them. Mainly just their usual version of hello of just stating their last names. Now he was in an empty lot, standing near Malfoy with their date looming over his head.

“Malfoy?” Harry asked, hesitantly.

“Yes, that’s my name. By your reaction, I’m guessing it wasn’t actually you that set this up? I thought it was an odd meeting place,” Draco said. Harry still couldn’t help just staring as his mind tried to wrap around this whole night. He was meant to take Draco Malfoy on a date. Granted the man was fit, wearing perfectly tailored muggle clothes and his hair was loose framing his face that seemed to glow in the dull lamp light. How could a person possibly make the god awful lights actually work in their favor? Apparently Malfoy could. And did he say he thought Harry set up their date? He really was going to kill Ginny later.

“No, I didn’t set this up. Ginny made the date for me and told me to pick a meeting place and make dinner reservations. She is so dead in the morning!” Harry bit out.

“I thought you two were no longer married? Was I mistaken?” Malfoy actually sounded insecure after the mention of Ginny.

“No, we are divorced, but we’ve stayed very close friends. We separated on good terms, more so since we do have a child together. What about you? I thought you did have a wife?” Harry asked.

“Should we head towards the restaurant while we talk? Wouldn’t want to miss the reservation,” Malfoy said as he started walking away already. Harry caught up to him and waited patiently for the man to begin talking. “I was married, and I too have a child, but things have always been strained between us because father had made a marriage contract for us when we were younger. Unfortunately, it couldn’t be dissolved even though both of our fathers were sent to prison for the war. It was recent that we divorced, she got a large portion of my money and so I’m thankful for my business, but it allowed to keep my son.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, Malfoy. It isn’t easy, I know, but luckily you do have your son,” Harry tried to console the man. He couldn’t even imagine what it would be like if he and Ginny weren’t friends and got along well and later had to fight for his son.

“Call me Draco, if you could? We may have been set up for this date, but it is a date nonetheless,” Malfoy said quietly, almost like he was shy to ask Harry to use his given name. “Even if it’s my first one since the divorce.”

“It’s my first one too, if that makes you feel better,” Harry offered with a grin. At least he wasn’t the only one that might be uncomfortable with this night.

“Didn’t you get divorced over a year ago? Why the wait?” Draco asked with shock. Harry had to smile to himself at that. It was everyone’s reaction to the fact that he had yet to be on a date since the divorce two years ago.

“Two years actually. I just wasn’t sure about myself anymore. Ginny and I divorced because of my newly found sexuality and I didn’t think I could find someone else that wouldn’t use my name,” Harry said solemnly. He kicked at a rock as they continued down the path towards their destination, now just a block away and in view. “ So I just put my time and energy into the kids and hoped that would make up for being alone again. But Ginny decided it was time for me to stop my moping and asked to set me up on a blind date. Something about knowing what my tastes really were.”

“Kids?” Draco enquired.

“Yeah, there’s Jamie that Ginny and I had, and then there’s Teddy, my godson. He lives with me now since Andromeda has gotten older and can’t keep up with a seven year old.”

“Andromeda? You mean Andromeda Black, my aunt? How do you know her?” Draco asked.

“Her daughter was Nymphadora Tonks and she married Remus Lupin, our old professor, and they named me godson for their son. Since they died, Andromeda took on Teddy, but then I gained full custody after I had Jamie,” Harry explained. His heart became heavy as he thought of Remus and everyone else who had died, and how it was the main thing he and Teddy had in common, being orphaned by a crazed wizard. His shook himself of the feelings and thoughts that always tried to come up when he thought of long lost friends. “Enough of the depressing matters! As unexpected of a date you were, I do plan to enjoy it and talking about the war is not the way to do.”

“Alright Harry,” Draco smirked as he was lead into a decent enough restaurant, even for his tastes. It was fairly quiet, unlike some muggle establishments he had been to and was surprised by the simple elegance of the place. “In the message I had received, I was a bit skeptical of the fact the restaurant was going to be muggle, but I’m impressed Potter.”

“First impressions and all that,” Harry waved off the compliment. It hadn’t actually been for making a good first impression, but rather he liked this place and was comfortable. It might have been underhanded of him, but now having Malfoy as his date, he was happier with his choice. He stepped up to the hostess and waited for the woman to ask his name. “Potter, table for two.”

“Oh yes, Mister Potter, right this way.” The woman hurried to show them to their table and provided menus after taking Harry’s order of his favorite bottle of wine that he intended to share with Draco. As they looked at their menu and waited for their waiter, it seemed the prospect of the date had finally dawned on the two men and conversation halted. For Malfoy, he wore a smug smile as he saw Harry become nervous, trying to avoid eye contact. After the menus were taken away, Harry had no choice, but to look at Draco now and assumed the smile he was receiving was rare to most people.

“What?” Harry asked nervously. Was his hair a mess? Did he have something on his face or shirt? He quickly swiped a hand through his hair to flatten it and another over the front of his shirt.

“I’m just surprised that you haven’t given this night up yet,” Draco answered truthfully.

“Well, I’ve always been the stubborn Gryffindor. Even parenthood hasn’t completely erased that.” Harry chuckled as Draco snorted into his drink, tension leaving him as he realized the date wasn’t going to too difficult for him to handle. If managing to get Draco Malfoy to smile and snort was anything to go by. “So I told you how I came to be on this date. Tell me your side of the story.”

“Pansy had told me of this dating company that helps you find other single people based on your preferences and convinced me to give it a try. When your name came up, I couldn’t believe it and originally contacted you as a joke. But the reply I got was an explosive response to me and it intrigued me. So I thought about it, and approached the correspondence in a more sincere way and after a few days, managed to snag a date. Of course, now that I know it wasn’t actually you, the first response I got in return makes much more sense that it was Miss Weasley.”

“You mean to tell me there is an entire dating profile of me? That responds as me? To other men? But it was you that got a date?” Harry asked. When Draco just smiled again and nodded his head, Harry groaned and tossed his head onto the table with a loud thump. He laughed as he felt a hand pat his hair in mocking comfort.

“There, there, Potter. It’s not so bad, is it?” Draco stopped patting Harry as he lifted his head. He knew his face was red with embarrassment and he didn’t know how to get the teasing to stop. “You’re blushing, Harry. Here sit up, the food is here.”

Harry sat back and allowed the waiter to place his dish down on the table. As they ate, they broke into small conversations that would die and need new topics, but Harry could safely say that he was not bored with it. In fact he was having a good time and it scared him a bit. Sure, they had grown up since Hogwarts and the war, but that didn’t mean that the date had to go well or bad. It was nice to be speaking with Draco in such a casual way like he was, without anyone around to bait either of them. After dessert, they left together and walked back to the empty lot where they had met. Harry stood under the light, once again nervous. What was he supposed to do, now that the date was over? Ask for a number or floo address? Ask for another date? Say it was a good date and leave? Was Draco expecting anything more from him?

His silent questions were answered when Draco stepped up to him and placed a gentle kiss to his lips, lingering for just a moment, before he pulled back. “Good night, Harry.”

“Good night, Draco.” Harry was stunned as he watched Draco apparated away, leaving him standing by himself. He quickly did the same, landing outside his house. As he fumbled for his keys, Harry touched his lips thinking of the quick kiss he shared with Draco Malfoy. As he was stepping through the door, intent on calling Ginny right away, an owl flew above him and dropped a letter. It was for a floo address, a floo address for Draco. With a smile, Harry clutched the note to his chest and went inside his house.

Date Two

    “I’ve told you every day Ginny, I have no idea where he is going to take me!” Harry was at Ginny’s place to drop off Jamie and Teddy for the night because he was finally going on another date with Draco. It had been two weeks since their last date and he had patiently waited for a response to his request for a second one, which Draco agreed to, but on the stipulation that he got to pick the location. Harry had no problem agreeing with Draco’s request and they both quickly worked out when they could be child free. For the entire two weeks, however, Ginny had been bugging him about the first date and then what was the plan for the second one.

“But it’s the festival tonight, Harry. He will probably be taking you to it, he must have mentioned something about it,” Ginny whined. Harry was silently hoping it wasn’t going to be the festival because no doubt all of the Weasleys, and everyone else he knew, or who knew him, would be in attendance. If he was spotted at the festival, he would never be able to escape from anyone and thus the date would be ruined. Harry really didn’t want to expose Draco to the kind of attention he was privy to in the wizarding world because of how new this ‘thing’ was with the other man. It was just a date. They had no labels, and he was not hoping for anything too soon, and it would be a guarantee that people would demand some label to slap on him.

“Honestly I hope not, too much exposure even for me,” Harry shuddered at the thought. “But you take the boys and have fun at it, alright?”

“Alright, but you have to keep me posted,” she demanded with hands on her hips. When Harry reluctantly agreed to keep her updated on his date, she smiled and turned towards the rest of her house where the boys were most likely raiding the kitchen for sweets. “Boys! Come say goodbye to Daddy.”

“Okay!” Was the collective response as he heard Jamie and Teddy thundering into family room. They threw themselves at his legs and nearly knocked Harry onto the floor.

“Bye Daddy, I see you the next time I see you,” Jamie said in his adorable rationale of when he was going to see Harry again. Jamie gave Harry’s legs one more squeeze before he ran back into the kitchen, leaving Teddy standing next to Harry.

“Why aren’t you coming to the festival?” Teddy asked, hair turning to a more subdued tone of blue as he looked sadly up to Harry.

“Because I made a new friend and I am going to see them. You’ll be fine going with Ginny and Jamie, right? All of the Weasleys will be there also, and I think Grandma is going,” Harry asked. If Teddy honestly did not want Harry to leave him, he couldn’t say no to the little boy. He had only been with Harry for the past year and was just used to sharing time with Jamie, whereas with Andromeda, he held all of the attention.

“It’s okay, I was just wondering. You never missed a festival before,” Teddy muttered. It was true. Since the end of Hogwarts and being with Ginny, he had gone to all of the wizarding festivals held throughout the year for different reasons. And with each one, he always made sure to include Teddy. With that thought, however, Harry was now realizing how hard it was going to be to miss the festival and why Teddy seemed hesitant to stay with Ginny tonight. Harry bent down and pulled the seven year old into his arms,squeezing the little boy till he squeaked.

“I won’t miss out on the next one, I promise. Now be a good boy and have a good time, alright?” Teddy gave Harry a small smile before leaving to follow Jamie in the kitchen. Harry then turned to Ginny as he pulled on his coat. “I know you know the drill, but call me if either get into trouble or if they’re sick. Don’t be afraid to call me away.”

“I know Harry, just have a good time.” Ginny waved at him from the doorway as he walked out to the gravel road and apparated away to spot Draco had asked Harry to meet him.

The wind kicked up as he arrived in front of a small park outside of London. Harry tried to pat down his hair as he felt it become even messier, but quickly gave up knowing it was a lost cause before running his hands over his clothes. Draco never mentioned where they were going, so he stuck with simple muggle clothing of dark jeans, a grey button-up shirt, and his favorite black coat. He then began checking his pockets to make sure he had everything he needed; wallet, pouch of galleons, wand, mobile phone. It wasn’t much and he knew he had everything, but with waiting, and his nerves, Harry needed to do something with his hands.

“Hello Harry,” came the voice from behind him. Harry jumped and spun around to see Draco standing there, with the small smile showing again. The man was once again dressed perfectly, in well fitting and tasteful clothing. Harry just stood there staring at Draco, unsure of how to greet the man and settled for just admiring the man. Draco helped Harry with his dilemma and moved closer to give Harry a peck on his cheek. “Sorry, I am a tad late, Scorpius gave a fuss about not going with him to the festival.”

“It’s alright,” Harry placated before giving his own kiss to Draco’s kiss. He was greatly relieved that they would not be going to the festival, or at least it had sounded that way. “Teddy asked me why I wasn’t going with them too. Gave my promise to go to all of the festivals with him, not that I really had to or minded. Is Scorpius your son?”

“Yes, it’s a Black family tradition to name children after stars and mother gave me a list to choose from and fell in love with Scorpius,” Draco chuckled before leading Harry away from the entrance of the park. “I don’t want to apparate this close to the entrance, I hope you don’t mind. Are you okay with side-along?”

“Yes, it’s fine,” Harry responded. His arm tingle as he felt Draco wrap his own around Harry’s, before he felt the pull on his navel as they apparated away. When they landed, Harry was assaulted with tremendous noise and the smell of fried foods. Harry laughed as he opened his eyes and looked at where Draco had taken him to. A carnival, a muggle carnival with the absurdly themed rides and attractions, impossible games, and a variety of foods that were sure to make him sick. It was great and he couldn’t wait to go in.

“I hope this is okay. I had figured you wouldn’t want to go to the festival tonight, so I researched for anything in the muggle world that would resemble the festival and this popped up,” Draco said as he shuffled his feet in the dirt. Harry couldn’t help, but grin like a fool at Draco’s insecurity. He grabbed Draco’s hand and rushed towards the entrance.

“Only way I could be disappointed with this is if we didn’t get our pictures with horrible hats on or go on through the Tunnel of Love. We are going to do all of the cliched things they do in the movies,” Harry laughed at Draco’s confused look.

“What is the Tunnel of Love and what are movies? And why do I feel like I should scared of those things?” Draco asked as he paid for their entry tickets. It was his planned date and he was going to pay for everything, even if Harry tried to fight him.

“Scared Malfoy?” Harry asked coyly.

“You wish Potter,” Draco answered. For the rest of the night Draco let Harry pull him around the carnival. The only ride Draco was willing to try was the Tunnel of Love, much to both men’s discomfort at the horrid display. They ate so much candy, Draco was sure he would be sick for days to come. At almost every game, Harry and Draco would challenge each other to do better and both won a collection of cheap toys and prizes. Before calling it a night, Harry convinced him to stop at a photobooth and make silly faces at the camera. Harry had two copies made and gave one to Draco. After leaving the carnival, they decided to walk for a short time, to work off the junk food they had consumed and to find a spot to disapparate from.

“This was amazing, Draco. Thank you for tonight,” Harry said, wishing he hadn’t all of the prizes in hands so he could keep up with the cliches and hold Draco’s hand. Instead he settled for walking so close to Draco that his shoulder kept bumping into Draco’s, but it didn’t appear that the blonde minded one bit.

“This was my first carnival and I’m glad to have taken you,” Draco replied. They stopped between two buildings and went down the deserted alley, finding it a safe place to disapparate. They ended at the end of the alley and both men shuffled their feet, not wanting the night to end even though it clearly was over. “I hope we get to see each other again soon.”

“Me too.” Harry smiled at Draco over his mountain of toys. “You can owl me the next time you’re free, or if you have a mobile phone I can give you my number?”

“I don’t have a mobile phone,” Draco said, giving a face at the unfamiliar term. “But I will owl you, or floo if that’s alright?”

“Sure.” This time, Harry leaned over and gave a chaste kiss to Draco’s lips, smelling the lingering scent of the candy they had eaten. He gave Draco another smile as he pulled away. “Good night Draco.”

“Good night Harry.” And they both disapparated away to their respectable homes.

Date Three

    Harry only had to wait a week until he saw Draco again. The man had said he had been working evenings lately and that the following week he was going away on a short expedition. So Harry took an afternoon from work and made plans to meet Draco for lunch at a small restaurant located in Diagon Alley, but rather tucked away and was only visited by a small list of people. Draco had been happy to accept the location, he knew of the place, but had never been there. However, for the first time, Harry was the late one and was seen to be running down the streets and came bursting into the restaurant causing everyone to look up at him and stare. Draco was tucked away in a corner and sat just shaking his head at the sight of Harry running inside with his robes all astray and hair flying wild.

“I am so sorry! I didn’t mean to be late, but the shipment we were expecting at work came much later than expected and I had to sort everything before I could leave,” Harry rushed as he sat down and picked up a menu. The waitress at the counter quickly ran over to take Harry’s order before returning to her post.

“Harry, you’re only five minutes behind, you make it seem like an hour has passed. No need to rush in here like a maniac,” Draco chuckled as he watched Harry try to right himself. At hearing the time, Harry comically released a sigh and relaxed, turning his attention to Draco. It was the first time he had seen Draco in robes since they began dating and it was the same reaction he felt each time he had seen Draco. He felt underdressed as Draco was once again in perfectly tailor open style robes that complimented his coloring in light blues. While Harry was dressed in simple robes that were black, with patches of dirt on the knees from having sort out his shipment before their date.

“Sorry,” Harry said again. He took a sip of his water and once again sighed to calm himself some more. “So how are you?”

“I’m doing well, thank you. Just a bit tired at having to work late into the evening this week, but it’s still enjoyable work,” Draco replied.

“What type of work are you into? I know you come to some of the board meetings that monitor trades, but I never knew what you did that warranted a seat,” Harry inquired.

“I run an apothecary and make potions by owl order. That’s why I’m working evenings this week, a special order came in and the potion can only be prepared at dusk.” Draco paused as the waitress arrived with their food. He began again after they had taken a few bites. “It can be annoying sometimes when special orders like this come in, but they are usually the most challenging and I love it. I have a seat on the board because of the trade for potion ingredients and being a Malfoy, I was honored with an invitation to be part of it."

“Then your expedition next week much be for a more rare ingredient that would require you to harvest yourself?” Harry asked. He smiled when Draco looked surprised at his knowledge, or maybe was surprised that Harry showed any interest in potions at all, and thus Draco’s work.

“Yes, that is exactly the reason,” Draco answered. Harry waved at him with his fork for Draco to continue. It was not polite manners to wave silverware at a date, but it was better than speaking with his mouth full. “Saint Mungo’s has commissioned a partner project to create a potion for a rare disease that has been seen again after about fifty years. In my research, I think I’ve found a property in a rare ingredient that may offer a clue, if not the right answer.”

“What do you need to find?” Harry was honestly curious about Draco’s work right now. The man got an excitable light in his eyes as he spoke about the possibility of finding an answer to something that had people riddled for years. Harry wanted to keep Draco talking, just so he keep watching his eyes light up.

“A rare mushroom,” Draco chuckled along with Harry at hearing what he had to find. “It sounds funny, but the mushroom I’m looking for is called Devil’s Cigar* and only grows in two parts of the world. However, at each site, the mushroom grows on certain woods and I need the one that grows on elm trees. I have to go there for the collection and experimentation because the one I need doesn’t respond well to artificial growth. It’s annoying, but intriguing in the grand scheme of things.”

“So where are you going?” Harry asked.

“The States. The mushroom only grows in a state called Texas. The other location it grows is in Nara Prefecture, Japan, but that’s the one that grows on oak trees.”

“And you need the one that grows on elm and that’s the one in the States?” Harry was amazed. A mushroom that only grew in two completely opposite parts of the world and Draco was getting the chance to travel to the United States of America. He would be jealous because he had never been to the States, but he got to travel quite a bit for his own business.

“Correct,” Draco smiled. Harry was coming to like those smiles more and more because of how easily they came. And it was Harry who made them happen. Who would have guessed he could have such a great time. “So what about you? What brought you to the board, some hidden department of the aurors?”

“I’m a wand maker,” Harry said. He smiled as Draco lowered his fork in astonishment at his announcement. Many people reacted that way when he told of his plans to study wandlore and later apprenticed under Ollivander and then starting his own business. “So I monitor my own goods for woods and centers. Being Harry Potter is also plus that got me on the board.”

“How did Harry Potter, defeater of Dark Lords, come to wandlore instead of becoming an auror?” Draco asked, still shocked over Harry’s revelation.

“I first became interested in wandlore because the phoenix that gave the feather for my wand only gave one other feather and that went into Tom Riddle’s wand. Our wands were brother wands and would connect each time they were pitted against each other. Then later after we had rescued Ollivander, he had discussed some wandlore with me then.” Harry watched as Draco became guilty when he mentioned Ollivander and the time his mentor spent at Malfoy Manor during the war. So Harry quickly moved on with his story. “After school, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but I knew I didn’t want to follow my dad’s footsteps in becoming an auror. One day I was walking down Diagon Alley and came across Ollivander’s shop. We began to talk about wands, and what makes for a better wand for someone, and one thing led to another until I became an apprentice.”

“Astounding,” Draco whispered. He was interested in Harry’s work, but the mention of Ollivander and the war was still plaguing his mind. Sure, he still thought of the war and who he had hurt, but each day it kept getting easier. However, there were some days that seemed to be worse, and he hoped with this latest story it wouldn’t bring about a bad day of memories for him. “Do you travel and go on expeditions as well then?”

“Sometimes,” Harry answered with a shrug of his shoulder. “If there’s a product I need to collect myself, sure. Or if there is a new discovery of a possible wand product then I go. One time I was asked to go Russia for a commission. The client asked I go to him and create the wand from product found only in Russia and then created on Russian soil. That was a hard one to make because the man kept insisting I use specific items, but his magic spoke of something else. In the end, he let me do what I wanted and he was happy with the result.”

“What do you mean his magic spoke of something else?” Draco asked.

“I’ve always been sensitive to magic and when I was studying with Ollivander, he said being able to see  and feel someone’s magic is part of being able to make a wand specifically for a person. I also have to sense how woods and cores would mix magically as well, otherwise the wand could become volatile and try to kill the wizard.”

“You’ve seen that happen?” Draco was horrified that something as simple as putting a wand core with a certain wood could be so dangerous. When getting his wand, he never gave much thought during the process when he had held the wrong wand for him. They didn’t react well to him, but it never seemed dangerous.

“Not to that point, but I’ve seen some dodgey wands when matched with the wrong wizard.” One instance that came to Harry’s mind was in the beginning of making his own wands with Ollivander, the wand had caused terrible burns to the wizard that held it. Harry thought he had done something wrong, but Ollivander had promised him that it was just one of ‘those’ things that happened.

“Interesting. I wonder what kind of wand Scorpius will be fitted with,” Draco thought aloud to himself. He had awhile to go yet before he had to buy his son Hogwarts supplies because the boy was only five years old.

“You won’t know until it’s time for him to be fitted with one,” Harry said. He fiddled with his glass as the conversation lulled. It wasn’t an uncomfortable silence, rather he enjoyed the easiness between the two of them. When Draco checked his watch for the time, Harry knew it was time to go. Even if he didn’t want to.

“Well Harry, I’m sorry to say that it is time I head into work. I need to get some research done before I have to start brewing,” Draco announced as he stood up and put on his cloak.

‘Yeah, I should be getting back to work. No doubt my secretary has ruined something,” Harry teased as he too got up and put his cloak on. They walked out the door together and just stood outside still not wanting to part quite yet.

“I’ll owl you when I’m back and maybe when can go out again?” Draco asked nervously. Harry smiled as it seemed that every time they parted, Draco would get nervous about asking to see Harry again.

“I’d like that very much,” Harry said before wrapping a gentle hand around Draco’s wrist and pulled him closer to Harry. Once again he gave Draco just a chaste kiss to the lips before leaning back, still holding onto the other man’s wrist. “Feel free to owl or floo before then if you want to. Good evening Draco.”

**“Good evening Harry.” Harry released Draco’s arm and walked away before he said or did anything silly. He hoped next week passed quickly and get to see Draco sooner.**

**Author's Note:**

> *: Devil's Cigar is a real mushroom that truly only grows in Texas and Japan. Feel free to look it up. I found it interesting, but I'm strange because who finds mushrooms interesting? hahaha


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